NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal is a winner in all senses. Apart from having one of the best careers in the NBA, he has built a massive business empire after retiring. One of his most successful ventures is rejecting a deal with Reebok and launching his own shoe line.

Recently, controversial rapper and former billionaire Kanye West took to Twitter. He mentioned Shaq in a tweet and called out his partnership with Jamie Salter. O’Neal aptly replied and explained his business model while also taking shots at Kanye’s current scenario.

Ye, as he is officially known now, was all over the news recently for all the wrong reasons. He was bashed for his anti-semitic views during one of his social media rants. Moreover, Adidas also cut all ties with West which caused a major dent in his net worth. Kanye West made around $220 million a year from the Adidas partnership according to Forbes. Deals such as these made the rapper a billionaire. According to reports, about $1.5 billion of Ye’s estimated net worth came from his deal with Adidas. According to estimates, Adidas’ Yeezy partnership brought in from $1.5 to $2 billion in sales.

Similar to West, Shaq has earned a fortune from his shoe line. However, he has had a very unique approach to selling his own shoes which started during an interaction with an old lady.

Millionaire Shaquille O’Neal rejected a major deal to start his own shoe line

Basketball sneakers are very popular all over the world. Take Michael Jordan for example. The Chicago Bulls legend has earned a fortune from his Jordan brand and is well-established in the world of sneakers.

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Ever since his debut in the league, Shaquille O’Neal has represented Reebok. When Shaq was leaving the arena after one of his games, an old lady reprimanded the former NBA champion for charging young kids outrageous money for shoes.

This led to a major realization for Shaq. He turned down a massive $40 million five-year deal with Reebok and decided to launch his own shoe line instead. He partnered with Walmart and he sold shoes worth around $20.

“I went to my favorite store, Walmart, and we did a deal. I was in all stores and my price point for the shoes was $29-$19 and since then we sold over 400 million pairs“, said Shaq.

Having sold a huge amount of affordable shoes, Shaquille O’Neal has earned a lot from this genius deal. Unlike other NBA superstars who are signed to major deals with huge corporations, O’Neal took his own approach and established himself in the sneaker world.

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